Write Actionable Content

Introduction

Writing for the web is different than writing for print. Most web
users—including those with limited literacy skills—are looking for
specific information or an answer to a question.24 They
typically don’t stay very long on a page. In fact, the average time
spent on a page is usually 15 seconds or
less.24,25,26

When it comes to health information, web users want to quickly and
easily do 2 things:

Understand the health problem or behavior

Find out how to take action—in other words, what they can do to change
their behavior or address the
problem27,28,29

Content is the most important element of your
website.24,30 No matter what the literacy
level of your audience is, always aim for health content that is:

Brief and to the point

Actionable and engaging

When you write actionable content, it means that you’re focusing on
health behavior: tell users what you want them to do and give them steps
to do it.

Engaging users means presenting content in a way that motivates them to
take action. Examples of engaging content include:

Interactive tools

Checklists

Conversation tools

High levels of engagement with online health information can lead to
health behavior change.31

Remember, plain language alone is not enough. If you want users to
adopt healthy behaviors, you also need to write actionable health
content.